The present invention comprises a new and distinct cultivar of Lily hybrid, referred to commercially as a Longiflorum-Asiatic Lily Hybrid, referred to by the cultivar name `Ceb Dazzle`.
This invention is the product of a controlled breeding program in Aurora, Oreg. The seed parent was an unnamed seedling identified as GH-403. This seed parent has not been released and was kept proprietary. The pollen parent was AM #2, another proprietary non-released plant.
The Longiflorum-Asiatic cross is relatively new to the trade. This type of cross was originally made to create colored Lilium longiflorum hybrids. Instead, due to the difficulty in crossing back to L. longiflorum, the plants that were developed had to be crossed with Asiatic lilies. As such, the results look more like Asiatic lilies. The resulting hybrids often have several advantages over an Asiatic lilly: (1) often larger flowers; (2) often larger, waxier leaves; (3) hybrid vigor; (4) lower susceptibility to scorch; (5) excellent flower texture and substance; (6) more virus resistance; (7) new and clearer colors; and (8) stronger, sturdier stems.
This invention has not been observed under all possible environmental conditions, The phenotype may vary significantly with variations in environment such as temperature, light intensity, and day length, without, however, any variation in genotpe. The following traits have been repeatedly observed in asexually propagated progeny and are determined to be the basic characteristics of this invention which in combination distinguish this lily as a new and distinct cultivar: (1) large, upright, bright yellow flowers with a lighter blush and some maroon spots; (2) large, yellow buds; (3) thick tepals with wavy outer tepal margins; (4) tall, strong stems for cut flowers; and (5) excellent vase life. Bulbs of this plant may be precooled and forced out of season for very uniform cut flower production.
To the inventor's knowledge, the only other Longiflorum-Asiaatic lily hybrids that are somewhat similar to the varieties `Geb Glow`, allowed U.S. Patent Application Ser. No. 08/333,257, filed Nov. 2, 1994, now U.S. Plant Pat. No. 9,245 and `Ceb Sun`, allowed U.S. Patent Application Ser. No. 08/333,495, filed Nov. 2, 1994 now U.S. Plant Pat. No. 9,249. Compared to `Ceb Glow`, `Ceb Dazzle` has taller stems, larger leaves and flowers, and broader tepals. Compared to `Ceb Sun`, `Ceb Dazzle` has larger leaves, slightly smaller and lighter colored flowers, and wavy outer tepal margins
Asexual reproduction of this new variety has been initially and subsequently accomplished at Cebeco Lilies, Inc. in Aurora, Oreg., by scaling and tissue culture. The resulting plants have shown that the above-mentioned unique features are stable and reproduce true to type in each successive propagation.